Chapter 204: Chapter 128: Jianghu’s First Lesson, Part 2

After hearing him out, Fang Lingxin thought about it carefully and felt that Fang Shuwen had a point.

Once she had overcome that mental block, Fang Lingxin had far fewer reservations when she fought the bandits.

But then, a new problem arose.

After she had killed most of a group of bandits, the remaining few knelt before her, weeping and wailing. With faces full of desperate pleas, they swore to the heavens that they would turn over a new leaf and start fresh, begging her to spare their lives.

If they died, they claimed, their parents, wives, and children back home would all die as well.

She wouldn’t just be killing one man, but his entire family.

Seeing their wretched state, Fang Lingxin wavered. The thought that their entire families might die because of her stirred an unavoidable feeling of guilt in her heart.

The killing blow that should have landed was stayed.

But at that very moment, one of the men kneeling on the ground begging for mercy suddenly raised a hand and fired three Sleeve Arrows at her.

The life-or-death crisis of that moment felt like being plunged into the abyss.

Of course, the three Sleeve Arrows didn’t harm Fang Lingxin. Fang Shuwen was watching from the sidelines; how could he possibly let them succeed?

Nevertheless, the incident left a deep shadow on Fang Lingxin’s heart.

Now that she could handle a group of bandits on her own, Fang Lingxin had grown a little cocky, feeling that roaming the Jianghu wasn’t so difficult after all.

But reality had just taught her a crucial lesson.

The dangers of the Jianghu were not just empty words.

If Fang Shuwen hadn’t been there to protect her, Fang Lingxin would have died in that instant.

But there was one thing she didn’t understand:

"I was going to let him go. Why did he still try to kill me?"

Fang Shuwen explained to her:

"Because they were lying.

"You were thinking of letting them go. They were thinking of tricking you, getting you to lower your guard, and then killing you.

"After killing you, he could go right back to being a bandit chief.

"He could use your head to build his reputation among the other bandits.

"He might even hang your corpse outside their stronghold to intimidate his rivals.

"And that’s not to mention that they would strip you of all your money and valuables.

"You must remember this: many people in the Jianghu are liars. What you hear may be false, and even what you see isn’t always true."

"Is everyone in the Jianghu like that?"

Fang Lingxin found this hard to accept.

Fang Shuwen sighed.

"Not everyone in the Jianghu is like that, and you shouldn’t use one type of person to define the entire Jianghu.

"This Jianghu is filled with countless people of all stripes.

"Where there are good people, there are also wicked ones.

"But the line between good and evil is often difficult to discern."

"Why?"

Fang Lingxin asked.

"Because ’good’ and ’evil’ mean different things to different people."

"Then what about for you?"

"I’m like most people in this world.

"Those who are good to me, I consider good. Those who are bad to me, I consider evil."

Fang Lingxin thought for a long time but still couldn’t quite grasp it.

Fang Shuwen just smiled. ’She’s still just a young girl, after all,’ he thought. ’I have the accumulated knowledge and perception of two lifetimes. Naturally, she can’t compare.’

Having taught what needed to be taught and said what needed to be said, Fang Shuwen took the opportunity that night to pass the Muscle Strengthening Scripture Divine Technique on to her.

He chose to teach her this particular Martial Art because it was the best and most suitable for her.

While the North Nether Divine Technique could allow her to accumulate a vast amount of Inner Strength in a short period, that Martial Art was prone to attracting trouble.

The Muscle Strengthening Scripture, on the other hand, was beyond reproach. It could perform Bone Marrow Cleansing, and there was no risk of going berserk from cultivation mishaps.

Its only drawback was that progress was somewhat slow.

But cultivating Inner Strength wasn’t something that could be accomplished overnight. Fang Lingxin was still young, so she had plenty of time to practice.

He figured that after a few years of building her foundation, she would have the ability to roam the Jianghu and stand on her own two feet.

’Until then, I, her older brother, can be the wings that protect her.’

What Fang Shuwen didn’t expect, however, was that after he taught her the Martial Arts, the girl immediately tried to kneel and kowtow to him without a second thought.

No matter how much Fang Shuwen refused, she was dead set on taking him as her master.

Her reasoning was sound: receiving such a profound gift as the transmission of an art was a great debt of gratitude. If she didn’t formally acknowledge him as a master, it would feel completely improper.

After a long standoff, Fang Shuwen finally agreed to let her call him Master, but he drew the line at the kowtowing.

Although Fang Lingxin didn’t understand his reasoning, she was overjoyed nonetheless.

She began calling him "Master" over and over, her face beaming with delight.

Fang Shuwen didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ’One day, when you find out you’re my sister,’ he thought, ’I hope you’ll be just as happy as you are today.’

Thanks to Shopkeeper Sun helping them plan the route beforehand, the journey for the three of them went quite smoothly.

They traveled by day, no longer aimlessly wandering. Knowing how far to go and which towns they would pass, they never missed a place to lodge for the night.

One day, they walked into a town while it was still early.

By this time, they were only a few days’ journey from Pojun City.

The number of Jianghu people they occasionally spotted on the road was increasing, and they were even more numerous within the towns.

The three of them found an inn to settle into. Seeing that it was still early, they decided to go out for a stroll.

As they passed a teahouse, they decided to go in for a bit to see if they could overhear any useful news.

But unexpectedly, just as they stepped through the door, they heard a voice—old, yet resonant and full of vigor—proclaim:

"Behold Fang Shuwen! With a single slap of his mighty palm, blood and viscera flew!

"Wails of agony echoed everywhere he passed!

"Of the eight thousand Red-clothed Guests, not one could match him!

"One man spotted a flaw, hoping to seize the chance to take his life, but instead, Fang Shuwen snapped him in two at the waist!

"Then you see that fiend, casually lifting the corpse by the head and holding it high! As blood poured from the body, he tilted his head back and drank!"